The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1887-03-24
Capital Punishment.


amount of severity in punishment always
| depends exactly upon the amount of brutality
in the party who inilictS it. For this reason
| the Indians punish more severely than we do.
| Once the so-called Christians would hang Il
| hungry child for stealing biscuit. Now we
| let the little fellow off with six months in the
reform school. Christianity tearhc, us to pray
| this way: "Forgvc lis aS we forgive those
| who tre>pa>~ against US" As we lan- those
who tre>pa>> against US therefore all de
| serve hanging. or our prayer is hypoclitical,
and if any punishment is iu>titiable We ought
| TO be punished for being hypoerites.
| Had Mrs. Dru>c inflicted two years of the
severest mental torture upon her husband and
then capped the climax by choking him to
death no one would believe sane person
could be british. Yet this is exactly what
the Christian people of New York did to Mrs.
Druse. But we are told that Mrs. Dru>c was
first british and this is alleged AS Il sufficient
apology for killing her. But, strange as it
may seem. this was exactly her excuse for
killing her husband. Now then, allowing that
each victim was killed with the same amount
of pain and anguish, which was the more in
| eNcusabc brute-the woman who killed
brutal husband, or the State of New York
who killed Il brutal woman: She murdered
her husband in temper; the State murdered
her in cold blood. She murdered her husband
instantly. The State tortured her two years
then murdered her. She shot her victim: the
state chokcd her to death. Which the
more british: She could not correct her vic
| tim by human means the State could. Which
then was the more cXcuSahlc for being nlll-
| man: Her victim was capa bic Of Icing a COLI
Stant tormenter. She could scarcely torment
the State at all. Which then was the more eN-
| cuSlblc for committing Il rash act: Another at
tempt at apology is urged in this form: ''She
was punished as an example for the benefit of
| Others" This excuse is as lame AS the other.
1t is exactly equivalent to saving that the state
murdered her to show that murder is wrong.
| This is certainly very strange logic. AS fur
| ther attempt to Justify the killing of the wo-
man it is alleged that she chopped up her hus-
bands body i'll Il horrible manner and then
| burned the pieces; but the truth is that hav-
| ing committed murder she was obliged to
| destroy the body to escape the brutal Ven
| geance of the State. 1t was therefore not her
wickedne>s but the wickedne>S of the State
that caused the chorping and burning Of the
| body. Who then deserves punishment for the
| chopping and burning of the body: III the
| State had been as humane toward Mrs. Dru>e
| as a mother would have been TO her child. only
one crime could have been committed. As it
| was. four crimes We're committed and the
| State caused three of them. Allowing SIZE
| was hlamabe for killing Mr. Drl,sc. this was
| her one crime. The second crime was the
| mutilation and destruction of the body. The
| state guilty Of this. The third crime was
| the two years OF mental torture inflicted upon
| the woman AM, all her friends The STATE was
guilty OF this As fourth crime the state
murdered the woman. Therefore out Of the
| four crimes the State committed three Of them.
| If in the great hereafter we are all forgiven
| As we forgive those who tre>pasS against lis,
| upon whom will the worse punishment fall.
| upon Mrs. Dru>e or upon the several people of
| the State of New York: 1t cannot be denied
| that had Mrs. Dru>e been an absolute Empress
and above punishment there would have been
| but one crime, and that the other murder and
| two additional crmr> We're due who'll, t. the
| fact that she was subject to punishment. W here
| then Is the mora. advantage of punishment,
| Mrs. Dru>e had out few near and innocent
| relatives who were tortured by her execution.
but the state world have hung her if her hang
| ing had been worse than death to !; hundred
innocent people. lIangin" a son Frequently
| torturc> his mother, father. brothers, sisters
| and many friends, relatives and children mor,
than it does him. What excuse can the state
offer for THIS brutal torture upon these inno-
cent people: i it pretended that numbering
! the son III cold blood will make them better:
| Beside committing the >ccond murder the
| state is in some measure Responsible. for the
first. Mr. and Mrs. Drl>e once loyc each
| other and married Their love cra~iuc the
state Obliged them still to live together or fare
worse. If the state provided by law that
| when couple rca>r,i to love each other their
marriage should hc nu'I and void and they
| should l." punished if they continued to live
together. thea Mr. and Mrs. Dr,,>r would have
| been separated before they had ,icgcn"ratrd 10
brutality. Bat the law takes 4 course cNactly
the reverse Of this and commands that when
couple iia> ceased to frVr each other they Shall